5 killed, including children, in machete attack at Brazil nursery

Five people have died after a teenager launched a machete attack at a nursery school in southern Brazil, police say.

The victims include three children all reported to be under two years old and two staff members. A fourth child is said to have suffered minor injuries.

The attacker then turned the weapon on himself and is in critical condition in hospital, a police statement said.

It is not clear what was behind the attack in the small town of Saudades, in Santa Catarina state.

Several dozen children were in the building at the time of the incident and staff tried to hide them, officials said.

Military police say they received several calls from neighbours who reported that a man armed with a machete had entered the nursery and was attacking staff and children.

Police say the man first attacked a teacher who was at the entrance to the nursery. He reportedly followed her into one of the rooms, where he also turned on the children.

At a news conference later on Tuesday, one police officer described the attacker’s weapon as “samurai-style” and displayed it to reporters.

According to the Brazilian newspaper O Estado de S Paulo, the suspect was later identified as 18-year-old Fabiano Kipper Mai.

Police chief Jeronimo Marcal Ferreira told the paper that Mai arrived at the Aquarela preschool on his bike around mid-morning.

Once he got in, he reportedly began stabbing a 30-year-old teacher who managed to run to a room to alert other staff members. The suspect followed her and then attacked the four children who were in the room at the time, as well as one other employee.

Two girls – both under the age of two – and the teacher died at the scene. One other child, and the employee died at the hospital.

According to the Brazilian news portal G1, the suspect was arrested and taken to a hospital, after he began attacking himself.

Social media accounts in Brazil have identified the slain teacher as 30-year-old Keli Adriane Aniecevski, who had worked at the school for 10 years, G1 reported.

While there have been deadly attacks in schools before in Brazil, they have mainly targeted older pupils and been carried out with firearms.